The 2010 Offerus might just be the best vintage we’ve tasted so far this century.

We recently tasted through several vintages of Chave’s St-Joseph Offerus and the 2010 was shockingly good.

The 2010 vintage redefined the Northern Rhone's popularity. The wines were so compelling that they sparked an explosion of interest in the region - and sent prices soaring. Wines like Gonon's benchmark St. Joseph have now crossed the $100 mark. Despite the frenzy over the Northern Rhone, Chave’s St-Joseph Offerus has managed to fly under-the-radar and prices remain shockingly low.

Tasting back vintages of Offerus highlights just how much this unsung bottle can deliver. In a vintage as good as 2010, the Offerus isn’t just a good value - it’s a steal. It’s crazy that you can get a back-vintage Northern Rhone wine of this quality for under $40.

The combination of concentration, clarity and elegance is simply stunning. We rarely encounter such depth of complexity at this price point. In our most recent tasting, we found vivid aromas of black fruits and fresh flowers, mineral accents, and rich baking spices. Over the years this wine has become increasingly well integrated and refined. It’s in an incredible place right now, but still has enough energy to continue aging for another 3-5 years.

The Chave family has been in the Rhone since 1481. No one has more experience with Syrah and no one creates such concentrated, refined expressions of Syrah. They are most famous for their incredible Hermitage wines, but their roots go back to St-Joseph and they are actively working to reclaim their foothold in the area. The Offerus includes some carefully selected purchased fruit, but the 2010 has a much larger portion of domaine fruit than usual.

Chave’s Offerus is always a solid wine, but the 2010 completely blew us away. This is one of our favorite vintages that we’ve had the chance to offer. You won’t find a better example of this killer vintage at this price.

To order, email offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Ian McFadden

Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits